University students will save an average of $340 yearly. College students will save $170. Make this part of an immediate $180 million down payment toward bringing Ontario’s spending on post-secondary education up to the national average. Invest $360 million immediately to help keep community schools open, protect early Junior Kindergarten and Early Childhood Education, and adequately support special needs education. This is an important first step toward repairing the damage caused by the Harris Conservatives in cutting $1.2 billion from our schools.
Change the school funding formula so it includes vital school functions such as: the use of school facilities for such education-related activities as school council meetings, child care and night and summer school classes; sufficient space for low-enrolment special education classes; and, dedicated rooms for physiotherapy, speech and language assistance, lifting and changing of students with disabilities, and other needs. Only the NDP has stepped forward with a clear plan to improve hospital services, cut college and university tuition fees, keep our schools open, get tough with polluters and help the homeless get their lives together again. Today’s NDP believes in an Ontario where everyone is given a chance to succeed and no one is left behind. A province where qualified young people can look forward to a college or university education without mortgaging their futures